Voyage of the Intrepid
by Neodaemo
Summary: A fanfic based on the game FTL: Faster Than Light. It follows the commander of the Kestrel crusier Intrepid, Silas Ideck. He travels through different areas of space to get to the Federation fleet and destroy the Rebel Flagship.


Commander Silas Ideck stood in the hangar, watching the mechanics finish modifications on the _Intrepid_, a Federation Kestrel-class cruiser. His crew was nearby, probably enjoying one last drink together before their maiden voyage. "This, after all, could easily be their last," he thought, now wanting to be in the bar with them. Their mission was to deliver vital information on the Rebel Fleet to the Federation base, to hopefully defeat them once and for all. The Federation fleet was growing ever

smaller, the last few ships in the last Federation controlled sector. The Rebels had taken sector and sector, and soon they would be upon this final Federation outpost

before the alien controlled sectors. Silas knew they would need to head out as soon as possible. He noticed the mechanics were finally done, and disembarking from the ship.

He typed a few messages on his comm to his crew members, saying: "Ship is finished. Heading out in T-2 minutes. Get here now or be left for the Rebels." Silas hoped his crew would show. "After all," he thought, "I would rather go in a blaze of an explosion then be left for the Rebels." He boarded his ship and waited for the crew.

In 2 minutes' time, the crew had boarded and strapped themselves in. They all checked in as ready to go, Winston, the pilot, Jordan, an excellent gunner, and Morgan,

the ship's multi-purpose operator. She could work anything from the engines, the shields, the doors, or the sensors. This trip she would be at the engines.

Silas checked the gauges on the oxygen system and the medbay, making sure they were up to specifications. He told Morgan to fire the engines, and told Winston it was time to go.

**First Sector**

The first jump to a beacon had a distress signal coming from it. It was a civilian ship, a decommissioned Federation Scout ship. They desperately needed fuel.

Silas had been in this situation many times, and so gave them enough fuel to get out of there. They paid him 29 scrap. Silas immediately applied it to the reactor to

power the engines. He also made a note to himself next time they were at a beacon that could, to have the doors upgraded to blast doors.

Silas stumbled upon another Distress call. This was the same civilian ship he had just come across, this time they seemed lost. As payment, they gave Silas another 11 scrap. On the sensors, he detected the Rebel fleet had entered this sector. "Time to get this show on the road. Winston, to the next beacon."

Third beacon had a rebel auto scout occupying it. As Intrepid entered the area, the scout powered up its FTL. "They're going to warn the fleet! Jordan, get those guns up!"

"Yes, sir, Commander! Right away!" replied Jordan. Silas heard the guns powering up, and soon firing off shots at the scout. After a few moments, the ship broke apart.

The spoils were some missiles, drone parts, which were currently useless, and scrap. At the 4th beacon, Silas came across a tavern full of mercenaries. He would have liked to hire one, but he had too little scrap. The next beacon was were the civilian ship needed to go. He prepared to jump. On the fifth beacon, the civilian ship opened a communication link with _Intrepid_. "Thank you, Commander, for getting us back here. We have a cousin down here that has a small shop, he could probably fix up some of your hull damage, and perhaps you could take a look at his wares."

"No problem," Silas told them. "It was on our way, and I would love to take a look at what he has." Silas shuttled down and decided to buy some missiles and fuel. He thanked the cousin and left. On their sixth beacon, a small civilian outpost was currently being bombarded by another auto scout. Not wanting innocent lives on his hands, he instructed Jordan to open fire on the scout. Targeting its weapons and shields, the missile and burst laser soon destroyed it without Intrepid taking a single hit. Silas prepared to jump to the exit beacon.

As he opened the jump map, a store caught his eye. He was still far from the Rebel fleet. He had time to check it out.

7th jump: Silas bought some missiles and fuel. He jumped to the exit.

8th jump: A Federation Loyalist settlement was here. Upon learning of his quest, they gave him some extra supplies. He thanked them and prepared to continue on his way.

**Civilian Sector- 2**

Silas arrived in a civilian sector. He decided he would stick to as many civilain sectors as he could, his mission was too important to be lost to pirates.

His first jump was to a Distress beacon, this time a civilian caught in an asteroid field. He tried to shield their ship, but the asteroids destroyed it. At least he got some extra scrap.

The second beacon was a Distress call from another civilian. It looked like the same people from last sector. "Sorry to bother you, Commander, and we know you have a very important mission,

but can you take us to this destination? We would REALLY appreciate it."

"I suppose. Send me the coordinates, and follow my jump signature." Silas replied.

Jump 3:

This was a store. He bought a Halberd Beam from it, knowing he would need it.

An automated ship with a memory cache passed through the area. Silas decided he would test out his new toy. "Jordan, power down the Artemis and Burst, and fire the Halberd."

"Right away." Soon after, the beam fired, and Jordan shut down the Halberd beam and re powered the Burst laser. Just after, Winston narrowly dodged a missile. While the beam charged, another missile struck the medbay. Silas commed Morgan. "Get into the medbay and repair it! We can't have that destroyed!" A final blast from the beam sealed the scout's fate. A pike beam was able to be salvaged. Useful.

Jump 5:

This is where the civilians needed to be. He took them to their outpost, and they repaid Silas by upgrading the _Intrepid_'s reactor.

Jump 6:

A Rebel _Disruptor-_class ship was lying in wait. The captain of the ship told Silas, "We did not fight a war to let a single Federation ship shatter our dreams of a better galaxy!" The Rebel closed transmissions.

"Jordan, show them how we roll. Missile their shields, then give them some beams."

"My thoughts exactly, Silas, sir." The Rebel pilot was good, however, and dodged every missile the _Intrepid _fired. Eventually one hit, and the Pike beam sliced right through them. They attempted surrender, but Silas thought that if the Rebels started it, it was going to go all the way. The pieces were more than the original offer. Good choice, Silas thought.

Jump 7: The exit beacon was in sight. Unfortunately, a slaver ship was in the way. At first, they offered them a 'laborer' for an outrageous price. "Jordan... open fire. I know most slavers would rather give off a slave for free rather than die." Silas said. A missile quickly dispatched their shields, and a pike beam and 3 shots from the burst laser did the rest. As Silas suspected, they offered up a slave. Silas accepted, and the slave they gave was a Caucasian male named Yeoz. Silas welcomed him aboard, and assigned him the the shield generator room. They jumped to the next sector.

**Engi Controlled Sector-3**

Silas loved Enji space. It was almost always a peaceful ride through, and Enji were always willing to help. The only thing he enjoyed more was Zoltan controlled areas. Silas prepared to jump to the first beacon.

This first jump was nothing but old satellites, completely uninteresting. Silas had things to do and places to be. He prepared to jump. The next beacon was at a Zoltan Research facility. A Scientist hailed the ship. "Hello, we represent a Zoltan research place back home. We set up an outpost here to study different species when they passed through. You wouldn't mind participating, would you?"

"I suppose me and my crew could help out," Silas replied. He and the crew shuttled down, and after a short while, it was done.

"Thank you, Commander. For participating, here are some cakes and a little bit of scrap." On the sixth jump, a distress call attracted Silas' attention. The Rebels had arrived now, and he needed to get to the exit ASAP. He found that the problem was giant alien spider creatures. Hearing this, he jumped away without a word. He wasn't going to lose another crew member to alien spiders. He shuddered.

_Intrepid _arrived at beacon 7. This beacon was placed near a pulsar, giving off dangerous ion radiation. If Silas didn't get out soon, _Intrepid _would fail her mission. A pirate, apparently oblivious to the danger he, too, faced, moved in to attack. "Idiot," Silas thought. "Jordan, kill that scum. Before we get hit with ion blasts!" Too late. A pulse hit the ship, and the sensors went offline. The pulse disabled the pirate's shields, opening up a line from the pike beam. The beam tore through them, and they tried to surrender. "That's a nice offer. I'll accept," Silas told them. He jumped off before another blast could hit.

Beacon 8, Silas found Mantis hassling some Enji. He surprised them with a missile to the backside, and followed up with a Pike laser. The Mantis, too proud to surrender, were destroyed instantly. He spent some scrap upgrading the weapons, allowing the Artemis, Pike, and Burst to be fired at the same time.

Beacon 9 was a fueling station. For this first time, Silas realized they were low on fuel. He bought some and jumped to beacon 10. A merchant was stationed here. "I'll return, friend, with some scrap," Silas told him. He jumped to a beacon south, and a Rebel scout was waiting for him. Jordan fired every gun, and the scout was utterly destroyed. He returned to the merchant, purchasing some missiles and fuel. At the exit, he found a businessman looking for a mercenary. He explained a shipment of his was lost by his previous captain, and needed someone to recover it. Silas accepted, and jumped to the next sector.

**Zoltan Homeworlds Sector-4**

Silas arrived in the Zoltan homeworlds, a beautiful place. Hopefully, the Zoltans would be sympathetic to the Federation, and allow him through. He immediately headed towards the businessman's lost cargo. At the first beacon, a Zoltan peace envoy hailed them. Silas listened to them talk, but had no interest. The good part was when they asked if Silas could deliver the message to their brethren. He accepted. But first, the cargo. The coordinates were at the next beacon. Silas jumped. He found the cargo, but its destination was very far away, and Rebels had appeared on the sensors. He wasn't sure he could make it. He jumped to the next beacon in line, and some refugees were on board a drifting ship. Attempting to rescue them, the Zoltans accused _Intrepid _for harboring criminals and opened fire. Sials had no choice but to retaliate. He had to bust through the energy shields, and did not want to waste missiles. Finally, the burst laser got through, and instructed Jordan to "unleash _Intrepid's _fury!" The Pike beam destroyed the cruiser, and Silas prepared to jump, the refugees thanked him with extra supplies. The next beacon had another hostile, and he dispatched it easily. He noticed the hull was considerably damaged. He went on the the place the Envoy wanted him to go. Here, a Rebel was waiting. He tried to hail them, and in fact, they responded.

Their captain said, "I don't think anything you say will save you. How could you possibly convince me to let you live?!"

Silas told them, "What if there could be a reconciliation of our ideals... without war?"

"Our ideals are much too different. How else could we end this without war?"

"True progress can only be achieved without bloodshed," Silas tried one more time to convince them.

Suddenly, the Rebel faded away and the Zoltan fleet appeared on his sensors. The Captain of the peace ship materialized on the _Intrepid's _bridge.

"Though your methods are crude and would certainly be ineffective, it is good to see you took our meeting to heart. If you show the Federation's willingness to adapt, then we must help in whatever way we can. We will provide you with one of our energy shields and our fleet will aid in any future engagements."

"Thank you, my friend. Me and my crew really appreciate it." The augments take place, and Silas, feeling good at heart, prepared to jump to the exit. First, he needed to stop by a merchant. He bought fuel, repaired the ship, and upgraded the shields. He then went to the exit.

**Engi Controlled Sector-5**

The first few jumps were uninteresting, with a few engagements the Zoltan shields helped with a lot. A Rebel _Rigger-_class ship gave him a little trouble, but a well-timed beam caused them to surrender. Silas, not wanting to waste too many more missiles, accepted. An auto-scout gave Silas cause for worry, as a drone it sent out took out the energy over shields too quickly for Silas' liking. An unknown person hailed _Intrepid_, asking for a 'head count' of a Mantis war camp. Silas, doing whatever he can to gain allies, agrees. Coming upon a distress beacon, he learns on a giant fire on a station. He shut off communications and left, to the dismay of his crew. Silas thought in the course of his journey his crew had gone soft. He needed to give them a talk.

"Crew members, this is your captain speaking. You seemed a little... _unhappy..._ with my decision. I think we need to have a talk. We have a mission to deliver this information, and I do not intend to fail. Furthermore, _I _am your captain, so _I _make the decisions. My word is final. I did not want to lose one of you four to a giant fire, or bring the fire on board trying to rescue anyone. Our mission is too important for that. Thank you." Silas was right near the beacon he needed to go, but the Rebels were too close. He needed to backtrack and leave.

**Unknown Sector-6**

Silas arrived in a sector that was the site of many Federation-Rebellion battles. Strangely, little evidence of said battles remain. Silas, having a bad feeling, decided he needed to get out of there as soon as he could. Luckily, the exit was not far. The few beacons he ran across were homes of Lanius ships, one of which he fought. Lanius are a secretive people, and not much is known of them, at least Silas didn't know much of them. He quickly went to the exit.

**Zoltan Controlled-7**

The Federation base is close, the next sector. Silas knew he needed to get through the Zoltan areas as quickly as he could. He plotted a very direct course to the exit. One beacon had a distress signal. He went to check it out. Unfortunately, his crew was all-human. Hopefully, there is nothing requiring specialized crew there. Turns out, it was another fire. Silas simply jumped away. In this next beacon, a rebel auto scout was lying in wait. Having tier 3 shielding, Silas instructed Winston and Morgan to evade as many attacks as they could until the FTL was charged. They jumped away, and headed to the exit. Before they reached it, they encountered a slaver. Silas could tell this ship was heavily armed, so he continued on his way.

**Federation Controlled-8**

Finally, _Intrepid _had reached Federation space. He explained their mission to Admiral Tully.

"Admiral, this is Commander Silas. I have vital info-"

"What? Who are you?"

"Admiral, this is Commander Silas Ideck. If you remember, you sent me and my crew to the fringes of the galaxy to gather intel on the rebel fleet. You sent me home is this Kestrel-class ship, outfitted for service. This is very important."  
General Turzil, of the Enji brigade, finally spoke up. "This intel suggests possible counter to rebel technology. Risk all, or save none."

"Alright, Silas, tell us. This had better be good." This was Admiral Tully again.

"The weakness of the Rebel Flagship is [TOP SECRET INFORMATION]"

After a little more exchange, Silas went out to destroy the flagship once and for all. Silas, being the competent commander, wove in and out of beacons, taking out any Rebels he saw. Finally, he reached the flagship. "Crew, raises all systems to full power! Winston and Morgan, keep us from getting hit! Jordan, keep those weapons hot! And the other guy I freed from slavers, keep the shields up as long as you can! We can't fail!" A great firefight ensued, the flagship, which was very large and well equipped, had a hard time keeping ahead of the much smaller _Intrepid. _Very soon, though, the powerful missiles of the flagship destroyed the shields and engines, leaving the _Intrepid _a sitting duck. The lasers blasted through the hull, splitting the ship. As the pieces of the Kestrel ship began separating, Commander Silas could only watch as through the entire area, the Federation was losing the upper hand. The Rebels pressed forward, almost to the Federation base. The flagship moved on, and Federation Commander Silas Ideck could only hope for a miracle. He shut his eyes, and the ship fell to the planet below. A sudden blaze of heat, and the world was nothing...

To be continued...?


End file.
